Creating a Cover Letter

Law students must avail themselves of every possible opportunity to distinguish their credentials, attributes, and experience. In today's highly competitive job market, a creative, thoughtfully composed, well-written cover letter can make a significant impact on hiring manager to move your resume from the tottering stack of many to the well-balanced stack of a few. The cover letter is, in fact, your first writing sample read by a potential employer.

Therefore, as with any other writing sample, your cover letter should be all of the following:

concise

well-structured

persuasive

well-reasoned, and

grammatically perfect

The desired effects of your cover letter are two-fold: first, to provide the reader with information regarding your career-related intentions; and second, to identify and attract attention to something about you which is unique, interesting, and desirable in the context of potential employment as an attorney.